The Office for National Statistics released figures this morning showing that in the year to mid-2023 a gargantuan 1,084,000 people immigrated to England and Wales from outside the UK, while only 462,000 emigrated. The largest annual increase since 1948…

Meanwhile the number of births at 598,000 was the lowest in over two decades. Nigel Farage was, as usual, on the case:

The population of England and Wales rose by nearly 610,000 to 60.9 million last year. That is the biggest increase since records began.

— Nigel Farage MP (@Nigel_Farage) July 15, 2024

It has been silence from Tory leadership hopefuls all day, though, after a combative previous week of briefing and counter-briefing. Establishing a credible position on the migration question is seen by many as a key to luring Reform and Labour voters back…